


Imperfections

by drhanniballecter, orphan_account



Series: The Lioness and the Wolf [1]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Collaboration, Collaborative Fanwork, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/M, RP Archive, Verse: This Was Not the Plan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-27
Updated: 2017-03-27
Packaged: 2018-10-11 03:45:44
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,183
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10454262
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/drhanniballecter/pseuds/drhanniballecter, https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Eirwen Surana arrives at Skyhold; Solas finds himself challenged by a Warden - she, tormented by the Blight and he intrigued, protecting his secrets.--- The first installment in a series archiving RP between authorsfadewalkingandshift-shaping.





	

Clad in old, dark robes and slipping almost wordlessly through the castle, Eirwen Surana had done everything in her power to make her presence unremarkable. She’d introduced herself to most of the major players, and even shared some drinks with Cassandra. But she spent most of her time as a cat, exploring Skyhold from a lens much closer to the ground.  


However, if she wanted to understand this place and its people, she needed the eyes of a person as well. So despite the itching in the back of her brain, the occasional whispered threat, she forced herself to appear in her true form. 

Now she stood near the wall of the rotunda, looking up at the massive, elven-styled paintings. It was remarkable to her that this style, the work of her own people, should make an appearance in the halls of an Andrastian organization. Her fingers traced a dry, dusty outline, and her brows furrowed at the smoothness of the paint.

“It should look better when it is finished..” A voice sounded off from the side. Solas stood, having been disturbed from his work with paints in hand, facing the woman in the room. 

She smiled and turned around. “It looks good now, though I’m no connoisseur. I take it this is your work?” Her smile turned into a slight smirk. “A lot of work for one person.”

“I suppose it is a lot of work. Although while I am here I, I may as well keep myself busy.

..I apologize, I never got your name. I am Solas.”

She held out her hand, causing her robes to shift, revealing a half-full bottle of lyirum at her hip. “Eirwen Surana. Formerly of Kinloch Hold, currently of the Grey Wardens. Sort of. What brings you to Skyhold?”

“What brings any of us to Skyhold?” He took her hand, shaking it briefly, before returning his arms to his side.

“The sky is torn and Corypheus threatens us all…. I did not know the Inquisition would be accepting _sort-of-wardens_ into its ranks. Though I suppose we could use any willing help…”

He noted the lyrium bottle.

“Mage or Templar?” He seemed wary of the possibility of _templar_.

“Why?” She asked with a smirk. “Afraid of templars? They’re not so bad when you can turn into a bear.” Templars stopped scaring her a long time ago, when she realized there were worse fates than even tranquility.

“Mage,” she said, still smiling crookedly. “Strange, how quickly history erases the narratives that don’t fit.” She was admittedly a bit surprised he hadn’t recognized her name, but it wouldn’t be too shocking for her story to have already been rewritten. “I imagine the Inquisition would not generally be open to ‘sort-of-wardens’, but stopping a Blight gets you certain privileges. It is nice to meet you though. Good to put an artist’s name to their work.”

“Stopping a blight? Then _you_ are the famed Hero of Ferelden?.. You will forgive me for not recognizing you. I had not before heard your name, only your title.

…Perhaps you have not witnessed Templar cruelty as I have. There is plenty of reason to be hesitant, bear or not. Especially in times like these.” 

She laughed and shook her head. “No need. That doesn’t surprise me, honestly. I saw a statue that I think was supposed to be me, but I was wearing heavy armor and holding a sword. As for the templars, well… we are lucky the Inquisition seems willing to take in apostates and has shown sympathy towards them. Technically I am not one, but the accusations have resulted in some awkward conversations that I would rather not repeat.

“But if you have witnessed templar cruelty, I take it you’re also a mage? What Circle were you in? I’ve heard some were… significantly worse than others.”

 _“No.”_ He said sharply “I am an apostate, but not part of any Circle. But that does not mean I have not seen what they can do. I am here because I’ve been careful, not everyone I’ve known has been so fortunate.”

She raised her eyebrows, not expecting that. “Ah. I see.” She had to wonder if he’d met Morrigan. They would get along very poorly, but mostly because everyone got along poorly with Morrigan. “A friend of mine would have said the same thing, though I think she thought herself more powerful than lucky.”

She took a deep breath, deciding to take a different approach. “I apologize, I did not mean any offense. What do you study?” 

He considers the apology.

“…It is fine.

I study a great many things. Although my _expertise_ is in the Fade.” 

“Ah, a dreamer then. A fascinating field. I often wonder if the Calling would not be so loud if I’d taken to such a subject.” She pauses, brows furrowing. “Do darkspawn dream?”

“I don’t suppose it is ever too late to start… Unless you practice blood magic.” It was a statement but it read like a question. He didn’t particularly care if she did or didn’t use blood magic, but it was important if she was interested in the Fade.

“No. Like Dwarves, Darkspawn have no connection to the Fade and therefore do not dream, at least not in any way that would be familiar to you or I.

Their magic comes not from the Fade but from the taint itself. Whether or not their blighted magic grants them some version of an ability to dream is something that remains to be seen, and I imagine it will stay that way, perhaps indefinitely.”

She smirked at the blood magic comment, assuming he was kidding. “That kind of magic has gotten me into a lot of trouble. It’s not worth the potential for disaster. And I wonder at what point the power of the taint overrules a person’s connection to the Fade. Is my connection weaker than yours, or another mage’s, because of the Joining?” It was not clear whether she was actually asking him, or thinking out loud. “I’m not sure how we could test that… and I would need more wardens, which seem to be in short supply at the moment.”

“You may have the taint, but your Joining has greatly slowed the effects of it. I imagine your connection to the darkspawn is severing your connection to the Fade even slower than your blood magic, however occasional. Still, your experience of the Fade is likely quite different than mine, or that of another who is nor a Warden or blood mage.” He makes a disapproving face at the mention of having _more wardens_.

“Ah, I believe I misspoke. I didn’t mean that I myself use blood magic- I had a…” She hesitated, not sure how to refer to the man who lied to her and ruined her life. “An acquaintance who did. Regardless, that’s an interesting theory. I’ll have to get in contact with Clarel again, she might know more. I am not very… involved with Warden activities, in case that’s not obvious.”

“I see. There may be hope for you yet, In that case. You may still find the Fade more or less easily traversed, at least for the time being. You should enjoy it while you can.”

Her eyes narrowed, though she still smiled. “Implying the Wardens are involved in unsavory activities?”

“Much more often than I suspect any Warden cares to admit. It is often talked about how the threat of a blight excuses even the most atrocious acts for a Grey Warden. So long as they are done in the name of stopping the darkspawn, though how often is that actually the case? Not terribly so, I imagine.”

She listened quietly, nodding a bit. When she spoke, her voice was calm, and almost weary. “Like any other organization, the Wardens are imperfect. How many templars have abused their charges in the name of the greater good? How many Sisters are complicit in the oppression of mages and elves? How long until the Inquistion must make sacrifices it would rather not, in the name of stopping this Elder One, or perhaps a greater foe?”

She sighed, clasping her hands behind her back. “I do not believe the Wardens can control every one of their members, just as I would not expect the same of any other institution. When the fate of Thedas in on the line, the Wardens recruit murderers and thieves to do what must be done. Perhaps it is an antiquated organization, and perhaps it has too much power, but tell me: how different is the Inquisition, an independent military force comprised of apostates, thieves, and murderers, from the Wardens?”

He seemed surprised.

“You are…not wrong. Given enough time, every organization becomes corrupt. To survive, an organization must devote resources to maintaining itself. Those resources inevitably accumulate until the original purpose, however pure, is all but lost.

I suppose the difference is a matter of mere circumstance. Perhaps I have judged the Wardens too harshly. Still, circumstance matters. I do not trust in their cause as I do the Inquisition’s.”

Her brows furrowed and she looked genuinely confused. “The cause… of stopping Blights?” She was more than willing to point out the Wardens’ flaws, but their purpose seemed noble to her. Save the world, at any cost. “I’m not sure I understand.”

“It is a noble intent, but one I ultimately do not trust to the Grey Wardens. There comes a point where good intentions are no longer enough. Perhaps they have not reached that point, but they will.”

She considered this, frowning. “And who _would_ you trust to stop a Blight, if not the people who have historically managed it?” She wasn’t sure if he knew why Wardens were needed to kill an archdemon, but she wasn’t about to tell him. 

“The Wardens _historically_ have managed only to buy us time. They think they have found a solution where they have not, and they will realize this only when it is too late. And then what drastic measures will they take? I can scarcely even imagine. Perhaps there is no one to be trusted, but _others’_ lack of credentials does not automatically qualify _Wardens._ In fact it is perhaps now the Wardens who are the _least_ qualified. The longer an organization stands, and the greater its numbers, the more tainted with corruption it will inevitably be. It is only a matter of time.”

Her eyes narrowed and she crossed her arms over her chest -this person was much better informed than she’d initially assumed. “Buying time… until what?” From her understanding, every archdemon killed meant they were closer to not having any more Blights. How could killing them only buy time? And what did it mean for them to be too late? “What happens when the last Blight ends, Solas?”

“Your guess is as good as mine, the Fade holds no such answers, at least none that I have found. But if you truly believe that the Wardens have found a stable solution….you _must know_ this cannot last..”

“Last… until what?” She frowned, tilting her head slightly. She had to wonder if he was an ex-warden himself, because otherwise she had no idea where he was getting this information. “It seems a straightforward answer, kill the archdemon, end the Blight. In time, the darkspawn will run out of Old Gods to corrupt.”

“If you think such things could ever be _straightforward_ , it only shows the incompetence of the Wardens. Do you even know what these Old Gods truly are? Does anyone? To presume they can be all destroyed without any kind of consequence…It is foolish _at best_.”

Surana inhaled and pursed her lips for a moment, considering this. “I have traveled far in the past ten years. The exact nature of the Old Gods is unclear at best and deliberately obscured at worst. However, the Avvar tell tales of spirits bound to dragons. It seems to follow naturally that these ‘Old Gods’ are similar to that -powerful spirits bound to dragons, then corrupted by the Blight. Maybe that’s an oversimplification, but it is a start. Unless…” She paused, brows furrowing. “Do you suspect the Old Gods are protecting something? That their deaths will lead to further destruction? Fascinating,” she seemed to be talking to herself again. “Morrigan would love this. Perhaps I should contact the Shaperate… tell me,” she started, addressing him again. “Have you ever been to the Deep Roads?”

This time, he noticed she was rambling somewhat to herself. He wondered if she did this often or if it was just a result of being around him. He did seem to have that effect on some people.

“I have not had the opportunity, no. Nor do I imagine I would ever want it. Why do you ask?” 

“I just have to wonder if we could find where the former Old God prisons were by going into the Fade. If we can see where they are connected, perhaps we can find something in the middle -the thing they may be protecting, if anything at all.”


End file.
